“After the death of Moses the
servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of
Nun, Moses’ aide: “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these
people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about
to give to them—to the Israelites. I will give you every place where you
set your foot, as I promised Moses. Your territory will extend from
the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the
Hittite country—to the Mediterranean Sea in the west. No one will be
able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses,
so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you. Be
strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit
the land I swore to their ancestors to give them. “Be strong
and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave
you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be
successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always
on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to
do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not
commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be
discouraged, for the Lord your
God will be with you wherever you go. ” So Joshua ordered the officers of
the people: “Go through the camp and tell the people,
‘Get your provisions ready. Three days from now you will cross the
Jordan here to go in and take possession of the land the Lord your God is giving you for
your own.’” JOSHUA
1:1-11
Change requires courage. Major
change requires major courage.
Where do you find the courage to
deal with change?
The life of Joshua is a profile in
courage and these few verses are a quick study.
Courage begins with a connection
that leads to a calling.
When God needed someone to take the
place of Moses He looked for the man with the strongest faith connection to His
self. The man who got the call was Joshua.
Courage starts with connecting at
home plate!
Courage grows from a calling that
leads to a conviction.
When God gave the call Joshua had to
decide two things: (1) do I believe God will do this; and (2) do I believe He
will do this through me?
Because of Joshua’s strong connection
with God He was convinced that the God Who called Him is able to use Him!
This was a home to first base issue.
Courage develops from conviction to
commitment.
There is no change without obedience
- at least not a positive change without obedience.
Joshua had to make a commitment to
obey God’s calling to lead His people to a major change.
This was a first base issue for
Joshua.
Courage comes from a faith
connection from God that leads to a calling from God which requires a
conviction about God resulting in a commitment to His calling.
But it didn’t end there! He had to
encourage God’s people to share his conviction and embrace the change. They
would have to find the courage to cross over the Jordan and their courage would
come from Joshua’s.
That was a second base matter.
Are you facing some major changes in your life right now?
Perhaps it is in the form of a calling from God or maybe it is a life challenge sent from God.
Where will you find the courage to deal with the change?
We will find it from the same God
and according to the same pattern as Joshua!